The Tigers have made their way to Dallas. The Northport-Huntington Tigers Ice Hockey Club’s Varsity team, which consists of students from Northport, Huntington, and Harborfields High School, finished first in their division this season. After a tough loss in the state championship to St. Anthony’s, they were invited by USA Hockey to Dallas, Texas, for the USA Hockey-Chipotle High School National Championships.

The Tigers came into the tournament somewhat as underdogs after not winning the state, or even county championship, but they managed to make it all the way to the finals before losing to Denver East by a score of 4-2. 

Northport-Huntington got where they did by going 2-1 in the preliminary round, including a victory versus the representative from Minnesota, the literal “State of Hockey.” Then, they won two playoff games on Sunday, defeating the North Warriors of Utah and the Nebraska team from Lincoln. The semi-final game against Lincoln ended with an overtime winner that was credited to Bradley Gray. 

The Tigers received remarkable plays from seniors Blake Hanson and Carmine Pittelli Jr. Pittelli had seven assists, while Hanson scored seven goals in total, including one in every tournament game aside from one. They were continuously helped out by stellar goaltending from Angel Spinelli and Aidan Donnelly. In the final game against Denver, Spinelli turned away 43 shots, allowing just three goals (the fourth and final was scored on an empty net). The Tigers entered the third period in the lead, but could not handle Denver East’s Kaden Dunham, who scored twice to complete his hat trick. 

While the Tigers may not have won the ultimate prize, coming home with a silver medal is still something to be proud of. With a vast majority of the team being seniors, this tournament was an outstanding way to go out.